FY09 Access to Artistic Excellence (part 1)

GRANTS TO ORCHESTRAS

Announced December 4, 2008

Some details of the projects listed below are subject to change, contingent upon prior Endowment approval.
Albany Symphony Orchestra, Albany, NY, $25,000
To support the American Music Festival, The River - Part II, marking the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson's journey up the Hudson River. Through numerous commissions and performances the month-long festival will examine the evolution of New York State as well as the idea of "voyages of discovery."

American Composers Orchestra, $30,000
To support the Emerging Composers Laboratory initiative. Featured will be New Music Readings, a commission, and Orchestra Underground and Playing It UNsafe Concerts.

American Symphony Orchestra, $15,000
To support the presentation of U.S. premieres, rarely performed works by established composers, and related educational activities. Plans include performances of works by composers Paul Ben-Haim, George Whitefield Chadwick, Paul Dessau, Hanns Eisler, Siegfried Matthus, Odeon Partos Mordecai Seter, Erich-Walter Sternberg, William Grant Still, Josef Tal, Edgard Varese, Rudolf Wagner-Regeny, and Udo Zimmermann.

Apollo's Fire, The Cleveland Baroque Orchestra, $12,500
To support Earth, Wind & Fire: Rameau & Vivaldi Do Battle with Nature. Concerts, educational activities, and broadcasts on public radio and television will take place in Cleveland with tour concerts planned in Calgary, Alberta.

Aspen Music Festival and School, $20,000
To support the American Academy of Conducting during the Aspen Music Festival. The summer institute for post-conservatory conductors will engage participants in a comprehensive, professional development training program.

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (consortium), $35,000
To support A King Celebration, a project of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra that will celebrate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In collaboration with Morehouse College, the project will include performances, educational outreach activities, and a national radio broadcast.

Boston Modern Orchestra Project (consortium), $12,500
To support the Creation Festival. In partnership with the Providence Singers, joint performances of choral and orchestra music that depict creation narratives will take place in Boston and Providence, Rhode Island.

Boston Symphony Orchestra (on behalf of Tanglewood Music Center), $40,000
To support the Festival of Contemporary Music at the Tanglewood Music Center. The six-day concert series, under the direction of American composer Augusta Read Thomas, will feature significant modern works.

Boston Symphony Orchestra, $70,000
To support the world premiere performances of a new work by composer Gunther Schuller. In celebration of the orchestra's 125th anniversary, four performances of Where the Word Ends will be presented with related educational activities.

Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra, $20,000
To support the Celebrating Russian Heritage Concert. Presented at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the concert will feature Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf performed with a screening of the Oscar-winning animated film and Stravinsky's Histoire du Soldat, performed with original choreography by the Jody Oberfelder Dance Projects.

Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, $15,000
To support performances during the June in Buffalo new music festival. Planned performances include new orchestral works by composers David Felder, Bernard Rands, and Steven Stucky with accompanying educational activities.

California Symphony Orchestra, $10,000
To support the Young American Composer-in-Residence Program. The residency with composer Mason Bates will include the creation and presentation of a new work.

Charlotte Symphony Orchestra Charlotte, NC, $15,000
To support Journey in Red and Black Phase I, the creation and development of a new work by composer Jalalu-Kalvert Nelson. The work will focus on the forced removal of Native Americans and their black slaves from North Carolina to Oklahoma in 1838.

Chicago Sinfonietta, $10,000
To support a series of concerts and related educational activities. Programming will include a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a concert featuring young opera singers, and a program of music inspired by oceans, lakes, and rivers.

Chicago Symphony Orchestra, $70,000
To support the Antonin Dvorak Festival of orchestral, chamber, and jazz concerts. As a culmination to the year-long programming theme "Echoes of Nations," the orchestra will collaborate citywide to celebrate the Czech composer and use music programming as a bridge for cultural and civic events.

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, $30,000
To support Contemporary Composers: New Music and First Impressions. Plans for the project include a commission, performances of works by living composers, including a world premiere, three U.S. premieres, residencies by American composer Jeffrey Mumford and Estonian composer Erkki-Sven Tuur, and related educational activities.

Civic Orchestra of Chicago, $45,000
To support stipends and professional training for pre-professional musicians of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. Performances and audition coaching will take place under the direction of resident and guest conductors.

The Cleveland Orchestra, $50,000
To support Contemporary Cleveland: The Cleveland Orchestra's New Music Initiative. The orchestra will perform works by composers Oliver Knussen, Paul Chihara, Augusta Read Thomas, and Osvaldo Golijov at Severance Hall.

Colorado Symphony Orchestra, $15,000
To support performances of works by composer Kevin Puts, including related educational activities. The concert will feature the world premiere of Puts's Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra, with principal clarinetist Bil Jackson as soloist, and Two Mountain Scenes, conducted by music director Jeffrey Kahane.

Detroit Symphony Orchestra, $45,000
To support the Living Composer Series, which will present four works by living composers, including Margaret Brouwer, Alla Borzova, Edgar Meyer, and Ellen Taaffe Zwilich.

Elgin Symphony Orchestra, $12,500
To support the Discovering: Leonard Bernstein Festival. Concerts, community events, and educational activities will examine the composer's musical legacy.

Eugene Symphony Orchestra, $10,000
To support American Encounters: Jennifer Higdon. The series will include performances of Higdon's recent compositions, a radio broadcast, and residencies by the composer and guest artist and percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie.

Grant Park Music Festival, $15,000
To support performances of contemporary works and related educational activities during the Grant Park Music Festival. Performances of works by American composers Michael Torke and John Adams and Scottish composer James MacMillan will be accompanied by pre- and post-concert talks and open rehearsals.

Houston Symphony, $15,000
To support the creation and presentation of Double Concerto for Soprano and Harp by composer Augusta Read Thomas. The premiere will be conducted by music director Hans Graf and feature soprano Twyla Robinson and principal harpist Paula Page.

Kansas City Symphony, $17,500
To support Connecting Worlds Apart, performances of works by composers Stephen Hartke and John Tavener. Hartke's Piano Concerto will feature pianist Emanuel Ax as soloist, and Tavener's violin concerto, Lalishri, will feature violinist Nicola Benedetti.

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, $15,000
To support the 40th Anniversary New Music Initiative. Three new works by composers Damian Montano, Lalo Schifrin, and Christopher Theofanidis will be commissioned and premiered.

Los Angeles Philharmonic, $80,000
To support the California Festival. An exploration of the state of California as a national cultural nexus, the festival will feature orchestral, jazz, and popular music concerts as well as a symposium and multidisciplinary events.

Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, $15,000
To support Purely Percussion, a concert and community events honoring Euro-Afro-Latin-Caribbean drumming traditions of New Orleans. The concert will showcase a wide variety of percussion instruments and include community activities.

Marquette Symphony Orchestra, $7,500
To support the commission and presentation of a work by composer Ashley Fure. The composer will participate in the orchestra's world premiere performance of the work at Kaufmann Auditorium in Marquette.

Miami Symphony Orchestra, $10,000
To support the Florida premiere performances of Joseph Schwantner's Chasing Light, which was commissioned through the Ford Made in America national initiative. The orchestra will perform the work in a concert program presented in Coral Gables and Miami Beach.

Minnesota Orchestra, $35,000
To support the Minnesota Orchestra Composer Institute. The professional development project will be co-directed by the institute's composer and new music adviser Aaron Jay Kernis and artistic planning associate Beth Cowart.

National Symphony Orchestra, $35,000
To support educational and outreach programs. The project will include free educational and family concerts as well as a festival at the Town Hall Arts and Recreation Campus (THEARC) in southeast Washington, DC.

New Haven Symphony Orchestra, $10,000
To support the Connecticut Youth Orchestra Festival. Orchestra musicians will conduct workshops, master classes, and side-by-side performances with student musicians in New Haven.

New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, $20,000
To support An Evening of Scriabin in Sight and Sound. Directed by music director Neeme Jarvi, the concert program will be performed during the opening weekend of a three-week festival at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.

New World Symphony, $50,000
To support the Advanced Professional Development Program. Under the artistic direction of Michael Tilson Thomas, the program will utilize performances, coaching, and community outreach activities to prepare young artists for musical leadership positions in the orchestral field.

New York Philharmonic, $70,000
To support The Launch of a New Era, a series of performances, premieres, and educational activities celebrating the inaugural year of the New York Philharmonic's new music director Alan Gilbert. The artistic team will include artist-in-residence baritone Thomas Hampson, composer-in-residence Magnus Lindberg, and guest conductor Riccardo Muti.
New York Pops, $10,000
To support a concert celebrating the 80th birthday of American composer Charles Strouse. Guest conductor and long-time collaborator Martin Yates will direct the program at Carnegie Hall.

Oakland East Bay Symphony, $15,000
To support performances of works by living American composers. The project will include premieres of new works by Nathaniel Stookey and Nolan Gasser, as well as works by PÄteris Vasks, Giuseppe Verdi, and Jerome Kern.

Orchestra of St. Luke's, $15,000
To support an artist residency at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill by the Orchestra of St. Luke's. In addition to performances, the orchestra will conduct master classes and lecture-demonstrations.

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, $20,000
To support commissions, performances, and educational activities. The project will include performances, multistate touring, and commissioned works by composers Ravi Shankar, Melinda Wagner, Ned Rorem, and Aaron Jay Kernis.

Pacific Symphony, $45,000
To support Hollywood's Golden Age, an American composers festival. Programming will feature music by composers Erich Korngold, Miklos Rozsa, and Bernard Herrmann, as well as the premiere of a commissioned work by James Newton Howard.

Philadelphia Classical Symphony, $10,000
To support First Pennsylvanians, a commission and performance project based on the culture of the Lenni-Lenape Indians of Delaware. Composers Curt Cacioppo and Maurice Wright each will compose new works and will participate in an artist residency that will include educational programming for school children in Philadelphia and surrounding counties.

The Philadelphia Orchestra, $65,000
To support Philadelphia Firsts, the orchestra's first performances of works by composers Thomas Ades, Guillame Conneson, and Matthias Pintscher. The concerts will be performed at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.

Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, $12,500
To support a tour commemorating Henry Purcell's 350th birthday. Under the direction of music director Nicholas McGegan, the performances on period instruments will be presented in San Francisco, Berkeley, Palo Alto, and Los Angeles, California, and at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Temple of Dendur in New York City.
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, $35,000
To support the Composer of the Year, an artist residency with composer John Adams. With guest artist violinist Leila Josefowicz, Adams will conduct the orchestra in the Pittsburgh premiere of his work for electric violin and orchestra, The Dharma at Big Sur.

Portland Symphony Orchestra, Portland, ME, $10,000
To support a concert program featuring the performance of Sabar: Concerto for Senegalese Drummers and Orchestra by James DeMars. Directed by music director and musicologist Robert Moody, the season finale concert will be presented in the Merrill Auditorium in Portland.

Post-Classical Ensemble, $12,500
To support Adams Snapshot, a concert of works by composer John Adams. The orchestra, directed by music director Angel Gil-Ordonez, will perform Phrygian Gates (1978) and Gnarly Buttons (1996) at the Lansburg Theatre of the Harman Center for the Arts in Washington, DC.

Powder River Symphony, $7,500
To support Starry Skies, an outreach concert program in rural northeast Wyoming. In Gillette and Sheridan, Wyoming, music director Steven Trimble and the orchestra, will perform orchestral and jazz repertoire with guest artists double bassist Hans Sturm and jazz vocalist Jackie Allen.

ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, $10,000
To support the commission and performance of a new work by composer and violinist Mark O'Connor. The concerto for chamber orchestra and piano trio will premiere with the Ahn Trio at the Southern Theatre in Columbus.

The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, $40,000
To support the 50th Anniversary American Composers Project. The orchestra will perform new works by Steven Stucky, Patrick Zimmerli, and composer-in-residence Chen Yi.

San Francisco Symphony, $70,000
To support A Viennese Festival. The three-week series of performances and educational activities will explore the works of composers Franz Schubert (1797-1828) and Alban Berg (1885-1935).

Santa Rosa Symphony, $10,000
To support Demystifying Messiaen, a concert focused on French composer Olivier Messiaen and his influences. The orchestra, conducted by music director Bruno Ferrandis, will perform three movements of the 10-movement Turangalila Symphony.

Seattle Symphony, $20,000
To support American Conductors: Perspectives on the Symphony Orchestra. Music director Gerard Schwarz and guest conductors JoAnn Falletta, Leonard Slatkin, and Dennis Russell Davies will lead orchestral performances, public lectures, and discussions at Benaroya Hall.

Stockton Symphony, $12,500
To support the commission and premiere performance of Ansel Adams:America, a new work by NEA Jazz Master Dave Brubeck and his son Christopher. The concert will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the death of legendary photographer Ansel Adams.

Tempesta di Mare (consortium), $8,000
To support From Wealth of Tears to Cheerful Hearts: Odes by Bach and Blow. In partnership with the Philadelphia Singers, Tempesta di Mare will perform Johann Sebastian Bach's cantata Trauer-Ode (1727) and John Blow's With Festive Hearts (1690) in Philadelphia and the Chestnut Hill neighborhood.

RELATED ACCESS TO ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE GRANTS

American Music Center, $25,000
To support online services for new American music. Services will include www.NewMusicBox.org, a monthly Web magazine about artists and issues in the new music community; the American Music Center Online Library, a searchable, encyclopedic database of contemporary American composers; and Counterstream Radio, an online radio station.

Association of California Symphony Orchestras, $25,000
To support professional and leadership development and technical assistance programs for California orchestras. Plans include an annual statewide conference and workshops for artistic and administrative staff, trustees, and volunteers from more than 150 orchestras.

Bard Music Festival, $10,000
To support the Bard Music Festival. The festival will explore the world and music of composer Richard Wagner by presenting a range of musical forms including symphonic, chamber, choral, solo piano, and vocal lieder.

Bravo! Colorado at Vail-Beaver Creek, $10,000
To support the 22nd annual Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival. The summer festival will feature chamber and orchestral concerts, open rehearsals, public workshops, and educational outreach concerts.

Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, $12,500
To support a professional development program for conductors and composers. The training program, led by conductors Marin Alsop and Gustav Meier, will offer emerging conductors the opportunity to lead small and large ensembles in rehearsals and public performances, program contemporary works, and collaborate with composers.

Carnegie Hall, $75,000
To support Honor! A Celebration of the African American Cultural Heritage. Curated by soprano Jessye Norman, the festival will feature more than 20 performances of diverse styles of African American and African American-influenced music-making, including spirituals, gospel, contemporary popular music, and jazz.

Conductors Guild, $15,000
To support conductor training workshops. Participants will receive instruction from experienced conductors and have the opportunity to conduct orchestral, opera, and wind ensembles at venues around the country.

League of American Orchestras, $150,000To support services designed to strengthen orchestras through learning and leadership development, research, and communications within the orchestra field. The project will assist nearly 1,000 member orchestras of every size and type in all 50 states.

League of American Orchestras (consortium), $25,000
To support the Data Accessibility Project. In partnership with the Concerto Soloists in Philadelphia, a new financial and operating data collection, analysis, and online user interface will be developed for member orchestras.

Mann Center for the Performing Arts, $20,000
To support the Arts in the Park series and performances by The Philadelphia Orchestra. Activities will include dance and music performances by international artists at Fairmont Park.

Meet The Composer, $50,000
To support the Creative Frontiers initiative. As part of the project, Meet The Composer will conduct regional development meetings, create new Web content and improve interactivity, provide technical assistance to residencies, and strengthen networking through increased travel and conference attendance.

Ojai Music Festival, $15,000
To support the Ojai Music Festival. The 63rd annual music festival will feature the commission and premiere of a work by composers Steve Mackey and Rinde Eckert for this year's musical directors, the sextet ensemble eighth blackbird.

Sphinx Organization, $50,000
To support the artistic development of the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble of professional African American and Latino musicians from orchestras and institutions around the country will perform concerts in Ann Arbor and at Orchestra Hall in Detroit, with young soloists appearing as guest artists in each of the concerts.

University of Chicago, $15,000
To support an artist residency by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. The orchestra and faculty musicians will present concerts, composition readings, and chamber music coaching and master classes, as well as community-based educational events for elementary schoolchildren and their families.

Young Concert Artists, $25,000
To support the Young Concert Artists Series. The professional development program of recitals and concerto debuts in New York City and Washington, DC, will include the commission of a work by a young composer and career management for emerging classical performers and composers.